Cat and Ryan

How We Met

Ryan and I met our second year of high school and instantly became best friends. Throughout the years, friends would joke around that he was in love with me but I never bought it (He totally was though). He was my best friend! Plus, I was dating someone off and on all throughout high school, so I was a little preoccupied by that. Ryan came on our family trip to Clearwater, FL the summer before college and after I had called things off with my on and off again boyfriend. (Ryan claims that it was on this trip where he knew for sure he was going to marry me one day). I started to have feelings for Ryan and decided to tell him.

We dated for about two weeks before I called if off because I didn’t want to have a boyfriend going into college. (I had always had a boyfriend and was young and stupid!) Two years later (and a year after OFFICIALLY being single) Ryan asked me to go on his fraternity formal (once again, to the beach). Little did he know that I had secretly had a crush on him for a few months and used this trip as a true test of my feelings. I found myself wanting to be his girlfriend the entire time and so I told him once we got home. We started dating and the rest was history!!

How He Asked

Three years later, we decided to take a trip over Memorial Day weekend to visit one of my best friends in Jacksonville, that I have known my whole life (AGAIN, at the beach). Little did I know, my best friends and parents had flown/drove in for my surprise engagement. We were at dinner on the second night at a restaurant near the beach when Ryan excused himself to “use the restroom.” Minutes later, my sorority little (yay, ZTA!) showed up with a card for me. It was written from Ryan explaining his love for me and how he had waited for this day for so long. My little, my friend Alisha, and her fiancé Joey, walked me out to the beach where I saw one of my other best friends (and now Maid of Honor) standing there with another card.

She then walked me further out onto the beach where my best friend (and now co-Maid of Honor) had flown in from California on a red eye to hand me my final card. They all then blindfolded me and walked me out to where Ryan was standing. Ryan’s best friend, who also happens to be one of my best friends, Michael, had driven in from SC the day after getting his wisdom teeth out, and was there to take my blindfold off to hand me to Ryan. The four girl best friends were standing behind him holding signs that said “Will You Marry Me?”.

My parents were standing off in the distance taking pictures and a professional photographer happened to be there too photographing a wedding and snapped some photos for FREE!! It was the best day ever :)